Lesson 7: Applications of classical conditioning
VCE Psychology Units 3 & 4
From last lesson………….
Outline the following for Pavlov’s experiments
•Unconditioned Stimulus -•Unconditioned Response -•Conditioned Stimulus -•Conditioned Response -•Neutral stimulus -
Answer
•Unconditioned Stimulus – Meat Powder •Unconditioned Response - Salivation
•Conditioned Stimulus - Bell
•Conditioned Response - Salivation
•Neutral stimulus - Bell
What is classical conditioning?
Classical conditioning refers to a type of learning that occurs through the repeated association of two (or more) different stimuli.
Learning is only said to have occurred when a particular stimulus consistently produces aresponse that it did notpreviously produce.
Who first described classical conditioning while conducting research into the digestive system of dogs?
Applications of classical conditioningClassical conditioning has a number of ‘real-life’ applications.
Applications of classical conditioning
Graduatedexposure
Aversion therapy
Presenting successive approximations of the
CS until the CS itself does not
produce the CR.
The inhibition or discouragement ofundesirable behaviourby pairing it with anaversive stimulus.
Flooding
Treatment methodfor fears/phobias by
extinguishing theCR.
Graduated exposure involves gradually presenting successive approximations of the CS until the CS itself does not produce the CR.
It is a process that involves the extinction of the association between the CS and the CR.
It is also known as‘systematic desensitisation’.
Graduated exposureIt has been successfully used to eliminate a range of problems involving fear and anxiety responses suchas a fear of flying.
Source: Digital Vision
• teach the person a relaxation strategy
• break down the CS into a sequence arranged from least to most anxiety-producing (a fear hierarchy)
• gradually begin to extinguish the CR by pairing items in the hierarchy with relaxation by working upward through items in the hierarchy.
Graduated exposure
The steps in graduated exposure are:
• visual imagery (imaginal exposure)
• real-life exposure (in vivo exposure)
• virtual reality technology.
Graduated exposure
Source: Macmillan Australia
Graduated exposure can be done by using:
The best results appear to occur using in vivo graduated exposures.
The process of graduated exposure
Graduated exposure
Before conditioning During
conditioningAfter
conditioning
UCS UCR UCS UCR CS CR
Relaxationtraining
Relaxation
Relaxation training PLUSSuccessiveapproximationsof thePhobic stimulus
Relaxation Phobic stimulus
Relaxation
Describe the process by which someone with a fear of enclosed spaces (e.g. using a lift) could overcome it using graduated exposure.
Graduated exposure
Source: Image Source
Aversion therapy inhibits (blocks) or discourages undesirable behaviour by pairing it with an aversive stimulus.
It has been used successfully to treat many different behaviours such as alcoholism, drug dependence, nail biting, gambling, inappropriate sexual behaviours.
What is aversion therapy?
What kinds of aversive stimuli could be used in aversion therapy? List three.
Source: Up the Resolution
Aversion therapy was used in Anthony Burgess‘s book A Clockwork Orange (1962), which was adapted as a film by Stanley Kubrick in 1971.
Alex de Large is offered freedom from a long jail sentence if he is prepared to undergo aversion therapy for his violence:
Aversion therapy at the movies
• de Large is given a drug that induces extreme nausea and anxiety
• he is strapped into a seat before a large screen and his eyes are clamped open (so that he cannot close them)
• he is forced to watch an unrelenting series of graphically violent films whilst feeling increasingly sick and panicky.
Using the case of Alex de Large, complete the following:
Aversion therapy at the movies
Before conditioning
Duringconditioning
Afterconditioning
UCS UCR UCS UCR CS CR
Nausea &anxiety inducingdrug
Nausea &anxiety
Nausea &anxiety inducingdrugPLUSviolence
Nausea &anxiety
Violence (without drug)
Nausea &anxiety
Flooding involves bringing the client into direct contact with the CS and keeping them in contact with it until the CR is extinguished.
The principle underlying this technique is that anxiety will be experienced at a very high level and then gradually diminish, thereby enabling the client to experience the CS in theabsence of the CR.
Flooding
Source: Macmillan Australia
Describe the process by which someone with a fear of heights could overcome it using flooding.
Flooding
Source: Image Source
Quick quiz• Question 1: What does graduated exposure involve?• Answer: Gradually presenting successive approximations of the CS until the CS
itself does not produce the CR. • Question 2: The best results when using graduated exposure appear to occur via
imaginal exposure. True or false? • Answer: False, best results are using in vivo graduated exposures. • Question 3: What does aversion therapy involve? • Answer: Inhibiting or discouraging an undesirable behaviour by pairing it with an
aversive stimulus. • Question 4: The idea behind aversion therapy is that the undesired behaviour
becomes the CS. True or false?• Answer: True. • Question 5: Name one behaviour that can be treated by aversion therapy.• Answer: Alcoholism, drug dependence, nail biting, gambling, sexual behaviours. • Question 6: Flooding involves bringing the client into direct contact with the CS in
order to strengthen the association with the CR. True or false?• Answer: False, it is designed to extinguish the association with the CR. • Question 7: What is the underlying principle of flooding? • Answer: That anxiety will be experienced at a very
high level and then gradually diminish.
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